UKCS Still Worth Investment Despite Brexit -Equinor
Norwegian oil and gas firm Equinor will remain committed to the mature British continental shelf regardless of the country's plans to leave the European Union, a senior executive told Reuters.British Prime Minister Theresa May abruptly decided on Monday to pull a parliamentary vote on the Brexit deal, thrusting U.K.'s divorce from the EU into chaos, with possible options including a disorderly Brexit with no deal."We are putting more investments into the U.K. despite Brexit, the perception of North Sea as being very mature and dying and oil price gyrations…
UK Regulator Probes SSE, Npower Merger
British regulators have launched an in-depth investigation into the tie-up between the retail power unit of SSE Plc and Npower, owned by Germany's Innogy, saying it may reduce competition and increase prices for some households.The merger would create Britain's second-largest retail power provider and reduce the "Big Six" dominating the market to five companies when they are already facing political scrutiny for their tariffs and pressure from smaller rivals.It also comes as German energy giants RWE and E.ON plan to carve up Innogy. The deal would make E.ON, another of the "Big Six", the parent company of Npower.
Aramco IPO Venue up for Grabs
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's upcoming trip to Britain and the United States could shape the decision on where to list oil giant Aramco, at a time when sources say the chances of London and New York hosting the IPO appear to be receding. The two leading financial centres have long been the clear frontrunners to host the international leg of the flotation, alongside a Riyadh listing. Yet this may no longer be the case as Hong Kong is emerging as an increasingly likely compromise because Riyadh wants to help Asian nations that are expected to become "cornerstone" investors, including China and Japan, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
Aramco IPO Decision Under Time Crunch
Riyadh holding talks with strategic investors, but New York and London want to win Aramco IPO. Saudi Arabia wants to complete talks with strategic investors such as China, Japan and South Korea before deciding where to list shares in state oil company Saudi Aramco, three sources familiar with the discussions said. The decision shows the initial public offering (IPO), which could be the biggest in history, is becoming an increasingly difficult balancing act for Riyadh. Saudi officials have said the government plans to sell up to 5 percent of Aramco shares on one or more foreign exchanges in addition to Riyadh. U.S.
LSE Has Strong Case for Aramco IPO - UK PM
The London Stock Exchange has made a "very strong case" for oil company Saudi Aramco to lists its shares in Britain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said on Monday after President Donald Trump urged the king of Saudi Arabia to list in New York. "Obviously there are lots of big stock exchanges which have an interest in Aramco including the London Stock Exchange which we believe has made a very strong case for it being based here," the spokesman told reporters. Reporting by Elizabeth Piper
Oil Dips as Qatar Rift Threatens Output Cuts
Oil falls as some question impact of diplomatic row over Qatar. Oil prices fell on Monday on concerns a diplomatic rift among some of the Arab world's major energy producers could weaken a global deal on output cuts, while sterling shrugged off a deadly attack in London and focused on this week's UK election. Wall Street looked likely to open down 0.1 percent, index futures showed , after falls on European bourses. The dollar lifted off seven-month lows hit on Friday in reaction to a weaker-than-forecast U.S. jobs report as U.S. Treasury yields rose and markets signalled they expected the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates next week.
National Grid Warns of Costs if Britain Exits EU Energy Market
Taking Britain out of Europe's energy market could stymie development of new power links designed to help avert a looming supply crunch and also drive up the cost of imported European electricity, National Grid warned on Friday. Prime Minister Theresa May signalled a so-called hard Brexit on Tuesday, which would involve leaving Europe's single market when Britain quits the European Union (EU). May gave no indication of what this would mean for energy markets in her speech. But any change could have implications for the development of Britain's electricity supplies, around 9 percent of which come from European imports.
Britain Plans to Deepen Security Cooperation with Gulf
Britain plans to deepen security cooperation with Gulf Arab countries and work with them to counter Iranian actions in the region, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday. Addressing a meeting on the sidelines of the Gulf Cooperation Summit in Bahrain, May said Britain would invest more than 3 billion pounds in defence spending in the region over the next decade. "Gulf security is our security," May said. Britain is trying to build on traditionally strong ties with conservative, oil-wealthy Gulf Arab monarchies before its planned departure from the European Union.
Britain's First U.S. Shale Gas Arrives in Scotland
Britain's first shale gas delivery from the United States sailed into a heated European political debate on fracking on Tuesday and immediately ran into its first practical problem - the Scottish weather. The huge "Ineos Insight" tanker had entered the Firth of Forth at sunrise, a lone Scots piper playing on its bow, as it headed for the Grangemouth refinery, west of Edinburgh. But gusty squalls prevented it from unloading its controversial cargo before an assembled crowd of dignitaries. "The Insight vessel was unable to dock at the port due to high winds," said a spokesman for Zurich-based chemicals giant Ineos.
As Decision Time Approaches, UK PM May Mulls Hinkley Options
Theresa May could announce as soon as Thursday whether Britain will go ahead with a $24 billion nuclear power project, laying down a marker on energy policy and her approach to investment from China. Hours before a deal was due to be signed in July, the new prime minister stunned investors by putting it on hold. May said she needed time to assess the terms of a project that would see French utility EDF build Britain's first new nuclear reactor in decades, backed by $8 billion of Chinese cash. After a review of the deal, including on the delicate issue of whether Chinese investment in nuclear infrastructure is a threat to national security…
EDF Chief Urges Britain to Go-ahead for Nuclear Plant
The head of EDF Energy has urged the British government to approve the Hinkley Point C nuclear power project, an explict appeal by the French energy giant ahead of a decision due within weeks. Prime Minister Theresa May intervened last month to delay the 18 billion pound ($24 billion) project, just hours after it was approved by EDF's board, former cabinet colleague Vince Cable said. The government says it will make a final decision in the early autumn. Cable said May was concerned about China's involvement, particularly in terms of national security.
China Blasts Australian Blocking of Grid Sale
China voiced anger on Friday over a decision by Australia to rule out on security grounds the preferred Chinese bidders for an energy grid potentially worth more than $7 billion and restart the sale process. Australia's Treasurer Scott Morrison, who must approve major foreign investments, formally blocked the sale of Ausgrid to State Grid Corp of China and Hong Kong's Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings earlier in the day. Last month, Britain said it would review plans to build two nuclear reactors at Hinkley Point with financial backing from China General Nuclear.
Australia Blocked Grid Sale over South China Sea worries
Australia halted A$10 bln grid sale to State Grid Corp of China. Australia blocked the sale of a major power grid company to Chinese interests in part over concerns that China, its biggest trading partner, is becoming a geo-political threat, a senior member of Australia's government said. Treasurer Scott Morrison, from the country's pro-business centre-right coalition, halted the A$10 billion ($7.7 billion) sale of Ausgrid to government-owned State Grid Corp of China and Hong Kong's Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings on Thursday, citing national security issues.
UK Mulls plan to pay Households affected by Fracking
Some tax proceeds from shale gas developments in Britain could be given directly to residents, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Sunday, in a bid to help clear the path for an industry hampered for years by local opposition to fracking. Britain is estimated to have substantial amounts of shale gas trapped in underground rocks yet fracking applications have struggled to find approval from local communities, concerned about noise and environmental impacts. Last year, then finance minister George Osborne said the government would create a shale…
EU National Climate Goals Test Bloc's Resolve Amid Brexit
EU regulators doled out bitterly disputed national emissions-reduction targets on Wednesday for spreading the burden of the bloc's climate goals by 2030, despite risks Britain's exit could unravel the effort to fight global warming. As the first major piece of legislation since Britons voted in June to leave, it is a test of the union's cohesion, as it seeks to keep to a pact agreed in Paris last year aimed at holding global warming "well below" 2 degrees Celsius. It assigns EU nations targets for slashing greenhouse gas emissions ranging from zero to 40 percent to achieve the bloc's overall goal of at least 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.
Brexit Could Provide Boost for Britain's Shale Gas
Britain's shale gas industry could get a helping hand from a falling pound and a supportive new prime minister just as it is gearing up for its first production this year, after facing economic and political challenges that slowed its start. The British pound's weakness since the Brexit vote has made it more expensive to import gas, helping the case for shale gas which had been hurt in the past by weak oil prices and by opposition to planning approval from local campaigners. After setbacks including a temporary ban in 2011 on the hydraulic fracturing - or "fracking" - technology used to extract gas from shale rock…
